1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to wheeled toys, and more particularly, pertains to battery-operated wheeled toys which has its movement controlled by a remotely located wireless device.
2. Description of the Prior Art
In the field of remotely controlled battery operated wheel toys, it has been the practice to employ two small motors, one connected to drive the front right wheel of the wheel toy, and the other connected to drive the front left wheel of the wheel toy, the speed of rotation of the motors being controlled by a two channel transmitter, one channel for each motor.
FIG. 1 illustrates a wheel toy 15 which most commonly may take the shape of an automobile having an antenna 23 for reception of the radio control waves, a transmitter 25 is mounted somewhat in the center between the front wheels 21 and rear wheels 19 on a support platform 17.
FIG. 2 illustrates in a general way, the prior art approach to a wireless controlled battery operated wheel toy. A support platform 17 is shown with the top or automobile body removed. Prior art toys of this nature mount each non-driving wheel 19 and 27 on a separate axle. The driving wheels 29 and 21 are also each mounted on a separate axle. The axles of the driving wheels 29 and 21 are mounted to a wheel platform 31 which pivots around a shaft 33 that is normal to the wheel platform 31 and the support platform 17 of the automobile. The axle of driving wheel 29 is attached to a reduction gear 37, which is driven by a pinion gear connected to the shaft of motor 39. Likewise, the driving wheel 21 is attached to a reduction gear 35 which is driven by a pinion gear attached to the driving shaft of motor 41.
The speed of motors 39 and 41 is controlled by a two-channel transmitter and receiver (not shown), one channel being allocated to motor 39, and the other channel to motor 41. By varying the speed of rotation of the motors with respect to each other, the wheel platform 31 is caused to rotate with respect to the support platform, thereby causing the wheel toy to turn in one direction to the right, or in the other direction to the left.
This type of arrangement has performance disadvantages. Because the two driving motors are located at the front axle, they cannot be larger, higher efficiency motors. Therefore, the current draw of the smaller motors that must be used reduces the life of the supply battery considerably. Placement of both motors in front, also, creates difficulty in assembly. Having both motors in front locates the center of gravity toward the front. This causes the operability and control of the wheel toy to be considerably reduced. The use of a two-channel transmitter and receiver for controlling the motor speed of the two motors is complicated and expensive.